Waking from this dream
by I'mFreefalling
Summary: Caine wakes up to a surprise visitor in his bed and the drama unfolds... *set the night after FEAR ends* PLEASE REVIEW


**This is my first ever fan fic so please review/comment if you want more updates.**

***Set after FEAR ends, Caina's first meeting***

Caine woke up slowly. He lay still for a long while, trying to grasp the edge of consciousness, but it kept slipping away from him. Bits of old nightmares and jumbled up memories floated to him from time to time. Then, as he finally gained enough strength to open his eyes, he saw her right in front of him.

It was surely a dream: her large, dark eyes gazed right into his; her soft hair hung down and tickled his cheek; her perfect lips, slightly parted, were just inches from his own, and it was all illuminated in strange moonlight which made her look like a beautiful, sinister angel. He allowed himself to believe that it was real, just for a second, but all the pain and hope and loss and fear came crashing down on him like a ton of bricks. He wanted her – no, he _needed _her – so badly that it scared him. It made him weak, vulnerable and pathetic; all the things that he could never allow himself to be.

'Diana,' her name formed on his lips and he breathed it out in a soft murmur. Reaching up slowly, he touched her face and to his amazement she did not disappear like she always did in his other dreams. Her image lingered for a few more seconds as he brushed his hand across her cheek - and then felt the warmth of her soft skin beneath his fingers.

Reality rushed up to meet him.

She was there. Not a dream or an illusion or a memory. Really, really there.

He snatched his hand away and scowled. An amused smirk found its way to her delicate features. 'Shame,' Diana said and her voice sent shivers throughout Caine's body. 'I like you much better when you're asleep.'

'What the hell are you doing here?' Caine's face felt hot and he sat upright; he suddenly felt very self-conscious as she sat on the edge of his bed while he wore nothing but boxers.

'Not exactly the cheerful good morning I was hoping for,' she said. Her dark eyes studied him with that patronising look she always wore. Caine felt a sudden bitter resentment towards the girl from his dreams; she had no right to turn up here unexpected and cause him to feel so much pain all over again. He hated her for making him feel so _helpless._

'What did you expect?' Caine glared, spitting out the words like a bad taste. 'That I'd make you breakfast and we'd chat about old times?'

Diana held his gaze, eyes gleaming. 'Actually, yes, I was hoping for pancakes.'

'Sorry, I'm all out,' Caine said bitterly. 'Maybe you should go ask Sam.'

Diana raised a slender eyebrow. 'Aren't you going to ask about our daughter?'

Caine flinched and recoiled as her words stung him. A hollow silence stretched out between them and Caine forced himself not to think about _that thing –_ their child. He suddenly noticed how much smaller Diana seemed; she was so much thinner than he remembered, with a tiny frame and small, drooped shoulders making her much less intimidating than he had first thought. He fought the sudden, overpowering urge to take her in his arms and hold her.

'You know, I think you'd like her,' Diana's sardonic smirk resurfaced as she taunted him, 'she already has those murderous, sadistic qualities of yours that I really fell for –'

'Shut up!' Caine interrupted her and swiped his hand in frustration so the bedside lamp smashed against the wall and fell around them in a thousand broken shards. 'Just shut up! It's a monster!'

With clenched teeth, Caine waited for her sharp-witted reply, the words that would sting and dig deep under his skin only to torment him over and over again like always. But she said nothing and when he dared to look up, her head was bent and he thought he saw wet tears glisten on her cheek. His stomach twisted.

Fending Diana off when she was angry was easy; tormenting her when she tried to be reasonable was fun; charming her until she grew shy was his talent; but what the hell was he supposed to do when Diana cried?

Every one of his muscles tightened and locked, each of his bones grew weary and he lost all strength in his body. They were only inches apart – he could feel the warmth of her body on his – but it may as well have been a thousand miles, for he knew deep down that anything they once had was shattered. They both deserted each other in a time of need and broke any remnant of trust that existed. Caine felt colder than ever.

'Sometimes, when I look at her – Gaia,' Diana murmured softly, without a trace of sarcasm, and avoided Caine's eyes, 'I glimpse something that makes me believe; maybe she's not entirely a monster. Maybe our real daughter is in there somewhere, I just need to find a way to get her out. I feel like she's _asking _me to get her out.'

She looked up suddenly, eyes shining straight into his; a silent plea. Caine stared wordlessly; his mouth hung open like a goldfish out of water, gasping for air.

'I don't want to give up hope for her,' Diana's voice cracked with emotion, and she blinked away tears. 'That's why I came here, Caine. I need your help.'

She clenched her jaw and lifted her chin in an attempt to look unscathed and regain her smug posture. It didn't work; Caine saw straight past the facade. He saw Diana's fragile side clearly for the first time and, caught in that moment of realisation, he cupped her face in his hands and kissed her fiercely on the lips. She succumbed to his desire and wrapped her arms around his neck in a desperate embrace. They kissed and a small amount of the pain, anger and regret melted away.

The pleasure was short-lived as Diana quickly pulled back but for Caine it was more than enough. He dropped his gaze and in a voice so starved of breath it came out as a whisper, he said, 'I'll do it.' But the feeble sound of his own voice shocked him, so with a devious smirk, he added, 'For a price.'


End file.
